T20 World Cup 2024, India vs Canada: Should Pant move down the order for Kohli to take the No 3 spot?

T20 World Cup 2024, India vs Canada: India has secured a place in the Super 8 stage after defeating the USA, and they will face Canada in their final Group A match on Saturday, 15 June, at the Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground in Lauderhill, Florida. Despite India's success, concerns have emerged regarding Virat Kohli¡¯s performance in the T20 World Cup. Although Kohli excelled in IPL 2024 with 741 runs in 15 innings, he has only managed to score 5 runs in three World Cup matches, including a golden duck as an opener.

Debate over Virat Kohli's role in Team India line-up

There is ongoing debate about whether Kohli should revert to his original No. 3 position, especially with crucial Super Eight matches approaching. Former batting coach Sanjay Bangar advised against altering Kohli¡¯s batting spot, arguing it could disrupt the settled line-up with Rishabh Pant at No. 3, Suryakumar Yadav at No. 4, and Shivam Dube at No. 5.

"Coming at this point, changing his batting position will sort of also lead to unsettling the other batsmen like you have settled and contributing number three in Rishabh Pant. You want to have somebody like Shivam Dube at five. Surya has got to bat at four. So in a way, the batting has sort of settled," Bangar explained.

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In contrast, former T20 World Cup winner Sreesanth believes Kohli should return to No. 3, suggesting Pant¡¯s adaptability will keep him effective. "Pant is a player who can adapt to any situation. We have seen him bat at different positions. He is a brilliant player, and I think Pant will be happy if Virat goes at number three," Sreesanth said.

As the match against Canada is inconsequential to India¡¯s position in the tournament, the Indian management might consider experimenting with new players. Replacing Kohli with Yashasvi Jaiswal as an opener could provide a right-hand and left-hand combination, challenging bowlers to adjust their strategies. Jaiswal has a strike rate of 161.93 as an opener in T20Is, demonstrating his ability to score quickly.

Sunil Gavaskar backs Virat Kohli for T20 World Cup 2024 success

Legendary Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar expressed confidence in Kohli despite his slow start in the T20 World Cup 2024. Kohli¡¯s five runs from three innings have raised concerns among fans, but Gavaskar attributes his dismissals to quality deliveries rather than a lack of form. Speaking to Star Sports, Gavaskar said, "These are early days in the tournament, there's still a lot of the tournament to go. Suddenly everything can't go wrong just because the man has got three low scores. It doesn't mean that he is not batting well. Sometimes you get a good delivery. Nothing to worry about."

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Gavaskar emphasised Kohli¡¯s self-belief and urged fans to support him, highlighting his outstanding IPL 2024 performance with 741 runs and the Orange Cap. Gavaskar stated, "When you're playing for any team, when you're playing for your country, there's no greater motivation. He has done so well for India over the years. He has performed well in so many matches. Basically, we have to show faith in him. He has enough faith in himself. We must believe that he will come good sooner than later."

Rain threatens India's crucial game time vs Canada in Florida

According to weather.com, heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected in the early hours of the day at the match venue, with a 50% probability of rain during the match, decreasing after noon.

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If the match is cancelled due to rain, India will still top Group A, and Canada will move up to third place, overtaking Pakistan. India's fielding coach, T Dilip, said, "Regarding this stadium, we played earlier so we are slightly aware of the conditions, what we get. Yes, the weather is challenging here, you don't know about when the rain comes and all, but we have been prepared for all these things. So, we are focusing on what we can control and at this point of the time, we can't control the weather conditions. So, we are trying to prepare ourselves in the best possible way but we want a game to happen."

India vs Canada T20 World Cup 2024: Probable Playing XIs

India Probable XI Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj

Canada Probable XI Aaron Johnson, Navneet Dhaliwal, Pargat Singh, Nicholas Kirton, Shreyas Movva (wk), Ravinderpal Singh, Saad Bin Zafar (c), Dillon Heyliger, Kaleem Sana, Junaid Siddiqui, Jeremy Gordon.

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